DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY (PSYC 3404)

Professor Spikes
Topic: The Life-Span Developmental (Chapter 1)
I. Developmental Psychology
I
A. Concerned with identifying and explaining the changes that each individual
undergoes across the life span.
B. Today those who study human development are referred to by the term
Developmentalists/developmental scientists.
C. Implicit to the developmentalist is the idea that change is orderly or patterned.
II. Development
Systematic changes in the individual that occur between conception and death.
A. Developmental Processes: Change and Stability
1. Two (2) kinds of developmental change:
- Quantitative Change
Change in number or amount (number of words child speaks)
- Qualitative Change
Change in structure, organization, or kind (child uses grammatically correct
sentences)

Qualitative change can be important to look at too

2. Stability (consistency of personality and behavior)

There are some developmental changes that should linger and some that should
not; ones that should linger are learning to act in compassionate ways, ones that
should not are the terrible twos.
B. Domains (dimensions) of Development
Change and Stability occurs within the following domains.
Each domain is separatethough they all intertwine.
Will look at each development through these domains
1. Biological Development
BD is growth of the body and the brain, specifically change/development in
sensory capacity (motor skills).
2. Cognitive Development

CD is change or stability in mental abilities (learning, attention, language,

thinking, reasoning, creativity)
3. Socioemotional Development
SD is change or stability in emotions and social relationships.
Note: How might a combination of the domains be intertwined?
Ex: a physical illness can adversely affect on physical, cognitive, and
socioemotional development.
C. Influences on Development
There is both a universality and an individuality to our development! Example
Can recognize fellow Americans in other countries because of certain
expressions/actions
1. Heredity, Environment, and Maturation
Heredity: what we get from our biological parents at conception
Environment: context in which you exist (neighborhood)
Maturation: natural sequence of physical/behavioral changes
2. Major Contextual Influence:
Reflective of how specific life experiences are different for different people.
Thus, such experiences influence development in different ways for different
people!
- Family
Single parent, same sex parents, multigenerational families, separated parents,
extended family, oldest siblings takes care of family
- Socioeconomic Status (SES) and Neighborhood/Environment/Resources
can be limited or enhanced by SES of majority of most of people in neighborhood
* SES has an affect on such factors as income, education, occupation, etc.
Thus, these are the factors that affect developmentnot SES itself!
Meaning
A persons SES alone may not be predictive of that persons
developmental endeavors. The factors that affect development are what affect the
person (ex: someone who is poor could succeed academically, someone who is rich
could not be intelligent)
- Culture and Race/Ethnicity
It is difficult to talk scientifically about race/ethnicity in relationship with
development. This is because most studies are based on the dominant group.

- The Historical Context

* The time in which you grow-up.
Presidents/public figures, technology,
3. Normative and Nonnormative Influences
* Normative Influences: Something that is experienced in a similar way by
most people in a group.
- Normative Age-Gradedhighly similar for people in a particular age
group. Can be biological or social, thus,
Biological: are predictable (menopause)
Social: more flexible (marriage)
- Normative History-Gradedcommon to a particular cohort (group born
around the same time).
* Non-normative Influences: Unusual events that impact our lives or
development.
a) Typical event happening at an atypical time. Example?
Losing a parent at a very young agetypically event but not usual time in life
b) Atypical event. Example?
This could be becoming paralyzed due to a car accident.
c) Unusually Happy event. Example?
Winning the lottery
NOTE: How do people often help to create their own non-normative life events?
4. Timing Influences: Critical or Sensitive Periods
1. Critical Period: When the presence or absence of something has a specific
impact on development.
* Refers to
early and late stages of development
* Most visible
during early stages (babies)
* If not received
Normal development can be offered.

* If needed stimulation received at the wrong time

Not likely to have same impact as it would have had if it had occurred
during the critical period (learning a language)
* Well documented in animals, though strongest evidence in child
development
comes through studies of language developmentcant deprive children
of something due to ethics
* Some researchers believe that for most aspects of development, the
concept of critical period appears
to be too narrow, children are very resilient and can compensate for
inappropriate stimulation during important times of development
2. Sensitive Period: A time that is optimal for the development of certain
behaviors or functions.
* A time that is optimal versus a time that is necessary
* Acknowledges that it is possible for development to occur later,
although
it is more difficult to do so and recovery may be incomplete
III. Studying the Life Span
Development goes throughout lifea concept of a lifelong process of
development known as life-span development!
A. The study of life-span development is interdisciplinary
Draws from many fields/disciplines (anthropology, biology, genetics), people from many
different fields contribute to psychology
B. Baltess Life-Span Developmental Approach
1.

Development is lifelong
Does not end until you die, from conception to death

2.

Development involves both gain and loss

Development does not just revolve around change, but also stability

3.

Relative influences of biology and culture shift over the life span
Biological influences become weaker as we grow older, but cultural become stronger

4.

Development involves a changing allocation of resources (for growth, maintenance/recovery, and

loss). Growth refers to improving ones skills. Maintenance/Recovery refers to practicing to maintain
or regain proficiency. Loss happens when maintenance/recovery is not possible. Thus, at what times
[in life] are resources allocated to each?
Childhood and Adolescence
Growth
Old Age
Loss
Midlife
Maintenance/Recovery

IV.

5.

Development is modifiable
Resiliency factor

6.

Development is influenced by the historical and cultural context

Many cohort/environmental influences on development

SUPPLEMENTARY-ASSIGNMENT #1
1. Complete the Identity-Wheel Exercise [on next page]. You will not be required to share
your responses with me or anyone in the class!

2. Briefly describe in writing (or mentally reflect on) your physical, cognitive and
socioemotional development during the following periods of your life. You will not be
required to share your responses with me or anyone in the class!

a. Age 8

b. Age 13

c. Senior Year of High School

NOTE: Pleae keep this exercise (do NOT throw it away)! We will address it again later in the
semester.

IDENTITY-WHEEL EXERCISE
We are all made up of multiple identities. Below is a list of a few of the major characteristics
that make up peoples identities.
As you think about yourself, think about the ways in which these identities play out in your life.
Use the paper plate and indicate by the size of each slice in your identity wheel (pie) how much
importance each of these identities plays in your life.
*Race
*Ethnicity
*Age

*Gender
*Sexual Orientation
*Nationality

*Religion
*Social Class
*Other (Ex., family, illness, school)

Think about and discuss:

1. Were any of the identity slices of your pie influenced by some aspect of your
biological, cognitive, and/or socioemotional development [thus far]?
2. Through which identity slice of your pie have you been best able to find
support? Why?
3. Through which identity slice have you experienced conflict with others? Why?
NOTE: Please keep this exercise (do not throw it away)! We will address it [again] later in
the semester.

V. Putting Developmental Theories into Perspective

A. How Are The Theories Similar? (ideas about patterns, explanations)
1. Concerned with identifying and explaining the processes involved in human behavior
and development.
2. Assume that there are predictable and regular patterns of growth and development.
B. How Are The Theories Different?
1. They differ in terms of the aspects of development on which they focus.
2. They differ in terms of nature of the explanation offered for any given behavior or
process.

II

C. Theories of development attempt to explain four characteristics of age-related

change:
1. Orderliness
Patterns
2. Directionality
Predictability
3.

Cumulativeness
Growth
4. Increasing differentiation and integration.
Change/stability

VI. The Implications of Theoretical Perspectives

Developmental theorists differ on five very basic issues:
1. Is the human organism good, neutral or inherently bad?
Early views / Todays theorists
Early: either inherently bad OR good, very exclusive
Today: may have same views but really emphasize inclusivity (looks at positive/negative
of all of them)
2. Is nature (biological forces) or nurture (environmental forces) the primary influence on
human development?
Today: the interactionist perspective (focus on how they work together)

3. Is the human organism actively involved in the developmental process? Are we passively
influenced by social and biological forces?
Some say we have passive reaction to our environment, some say we are active
purposeful beings who make sense of our world/determine our learning
4. Is development continuous or discontinuous?
Continuousregards development as a cumulative process of adding on more of the same
types of skills with which the organism began. Gradually and Smoothly. Focus on
quantitative changes.
Discontinuousassumes that new and different ways of interpreting and responding to
the world emerge at particular time periods (stages). Sudden Shift. Focus on
qualitative changes.

Example: Childs First Step

See Diagram 1

5. Do humans follow similar or different developmental paths?

Timing may differ across cultures
Continuous: developmental change varied significantly from one culture to another**

VII. Seven Major Theoretical Perspectives of Development

To effectively evaluate and interpret research, it is important to recognize the
theoretical perspective on which it is based. Refer to Tables 1-4, Figure 1and 2
According the cognitive theories, the person is an active initiator. Behavioral
and social cognitive, people learn in a social context by observing/imitation
active initiators. Interlocking contextual systems (church, neighborhood,
school) is ecological. Freud is psychoanalytic. Erikson stages are reflective of
psychoanalytic. Table 4 is cognitive. Bendura is behavioral/cognitive.
Bronfenface is ecological.